A few years ago, when my now grown daughter, Justina, was a little girl, we visited a farm where she was picking ripe strawberries from a large field. The units hit the cart on this sunny June day. The other went straight into the mouth.
There I learned that the month of June is dedicated to strawberries. This also applies to roses, which makes sense since both plants are in the Rosaceae family.
And as I found out that day on the farm, June is also rhubarb, which I've never seen before.
Following in the footsteps of other strawberry pickers waiting to pay for their import, I placed a bunch of rhubarb in my cart and wondered what to do with it. My buyer taught me how to make pies and jam, so I went home on a mission to make gorgeous red stalks like celery and learn how to grow them.
I have since learned that rhubarb is a popular June crop in New England and some northern and midwestern states where strawberry and rhubarb desserts predominate. It's not as common in my New York home as it was years ago, but I wouldn't call it a staple.
The good news is that for those struggling to find it in the supermarket — or who just want to grow it themselves — getting rhubarb out in the garden is a worthwhile endeavor, though it will take some patience.
Rhubarb is a perennial in garden zones 3-8 and can wait up to 10 years to come back and harvest. Plant bare root in fall or spring when the weather is still cool. They spread, so give them space by placing them in even rows, 90 to 120 cm apart. Bury the buds, or "eyes," about two inches below the surface of the soil, making sure they point toward the compost-rich soil.
Water the plants well and apply 5 cm of mulch in warm weather to retain moisture, control weeds and regulate soil temperature. Then use a balanced slow-release fertilizer with a 10-10-10 nutrient ratio.
Do not harvest the stems the first year of rhubarb growing in your garden. This damages the life of the plant. However, remove the flowers and stems so the plant can focus its energy on root growth rather than seed production. Add mulch in late fall when temperatures drop.
You can begin harvesting—sparingly—in the plant's second year, removing no more than four stems from the plant when they are red (unless you grow pink or green varieties) and between 12 and 18 inches tall. Take more risks that eat up the plant's energy and reduce future production. So be careful.
During and after the third year, you can harvest freely, but never remove more than two-thirds of the plant.
Rhubarb leaves are poisonous. Therefore, remove these and discard them before cutting the stems into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces for cooking.
I repeat: do not eat the leaves.
I'll admit, I was skeptical after trying bitter raw rhubarb stems years ago. But still with my mouth shut and fingers crossed, I added the chops to the strawberry shortcake filling. Pancakes are delicious, of course. The sweet grains are perfectly balanced and complemented by the rhubarb quality. I was instantly—and surprisingly—transformed.
A vegetable that is considered a fruit, just as a tomato is considered a fruit that is usually considered a vegetable, is also not considered a pony. It works well in jams, relishes, desserts and can even be boiled for 10 minutes and then mixed with fruit to make a smoothie. Try baking it, boiling it, frying it, serving it as ice cream or adding it to applesauce recipes. Don't forget the sweetener.
